Esters of polyhydric alcohols, also known as polyol esters, are known in the industry for a number of uses, including for use as lubricants or plasticizers.
Polyol esters have been made by a number of manufacturing methods, such as by reacting polyols with linear or branched aliphatic monocarboxylic C3-20 acids in the presence of a Lewis acid comprising at least one element from groups 4 to 14 of the periodic table of the elements as catalyst, and optionally in the presence of an adsorbent, and steam treatment in the course of workup of the crude esters. See, e.g., US Patent Application Publication No. 2012/0190883 to Frey.
A method for manufacturing polyol esters is described in U.S. Pat. No. 8,399,697 to Weber, wherein polyols are reacted with linear or branched aliphatic monocarboxylic C3-20 acids in the presence of an adsorbent and steam treatment in the course of workup of the crude esters. Another method is described in U.S. Pat. No. 8,524,937 to Adamzik, wherein polyols are reacted with linear or branched aliphatic monocarboxylic C3-20 acids in the presence of catalysts and adsorbent by partial recycling of the aliphatic monocarboxylic acid removed into the esterification reaction or into subsequent esterification batches.